Amer

After a series of suggestive short fiction films, the French-Belgian directing duo Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani have hit the big time with the sinister, hallucinogenic Amer. The film follows a woman through three decisive episodes in her life. She is still a young girl when she brings her dead grandpa back to life and her parents make love – her first confrontation with the world of adults. Then she discovers in her puberty the terrifying power of decay and sexuality. In the third part, she wrestles with loss, loneliness and death when she returns to her parental home, now derelict. There, a chase begins with a taxi driver and a mysterious third person – but it never becomes clear who is following whom. Amer is intriguing because the directors juxtapose horror elements with colour and montage experiments, elegant narrative strategies and references to Alfred Hitchcock, David Lynch and Mario Bava. A complex Freudian allegory with impressive production design.

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